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    #31
    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
    All this talk about the value of club soccer and scholarship opportunity and reality needs to start with one very important aspect. The player’s talent. That’s it. Promises and carrots are just that. Talk is cheap. Parents need to be the advocates for their players and put in the work getting them the best training possible, exposure, and then working the recruitment process BUT this only works if the player is truly talented. Parents need to learn the business, so to speak, and evaluate their own child with realistic eyes and target schools appropriately.

    And along with that be honest with others. So many new people (like me) got misinformation along the way because of boastful and/or green eyed parents.

    So many times I’ve heard parents say “We didn’t want D1 for our daughter because it was so much work.” Yeah okay. That’s code for she wasn’t good enough. Be real and be proud and don’t apologize. If you are getting money to play soccer at the D2 level then great. We just read the statistics here and how difficult it is to play in college at all let alone get money.

    And many times a player goes from D1 in their parent’s eyes as a freshman to a D3 player as a junior in everyone else’s eyes. Parents become bitter with the entire process and feel slighted. But their player was always a D3 level talent. Their fault for not seeing that and they would have had a much better experience with open eyes.

    A lot of talk on the MA side about targeting the right schools. Some is pretty good. Read it. Targeting correctly will pay off.

    Most importantly is a true evaluation. Go to a few D1 ID clinics and look around and see how they fit. Most D1 clinics have players of various levels and just a few are D1 material. The rest weren’t invited and are trying it on for size. Your player should be one of the best there if they are truly at that level. Their coach should receive a call afterwards to inquire about them. They should get noticed. If not then try some D2 schools.

    Take off the rose colored glasses.
    It is not always true that a D1 level player wouldn’t choose D3 instead. I know 2 D1 players who received quite a bit of scholarship money. Both told me directly that they would most definitely counsel some players to choose D3 because of the D1 time commitment, especially if that player has a difficult college major requiring internships or lab time. Both say it is a ton of work for them playing D1.

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      #32
      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
      It is not always true that a D1 level player wouldn’t choose D3 instead. I know 2 D1 players who received quite a bit of scholarship money. Both told me directly that they would most definitely counsel some players to choose D3 because of the D1 time commitment, especially if that player has a difficult college major requiring internships or lab time. Both say it is a ton of work for them playing D1.
      No doubt it’s a lot of time and effort. Isn’t that what they’ve been doing all high school? My daughter needs the structure. She finds her lighter winter schedule to be more difficult to manage her time properly. She needs the hard physical work to keep her body and mind at optimal levels. I guess a “D1 level player” must be someone who can handle that level both physically and mentally.

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        #33
        Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
        No one should be doing this because you expect a payout at the end. You do it because your kid loves the sport and wants to play at the highest level they can (whatever level that is). If (big if) soccer helps get them into a better school than without soccer that's fantastic. Even that isn't guaranteed since grades will still make a difference too. If your kid gets a few $ to play in college you won the lottery. Seriously the odds and $ are nearly that bad, especially for boys. I wish taking a seminar in the realities of college recruiting was mandatory for all 7th grade families. Guaranteed more would change their path if they knew what lay ahead.
        I agree with this except that I feel parents should educate themselves. Shame on your if you think your player is D1 scholarship worthy when they are not. You are your child’s advocate and need to live in reality. We went into this thinking a scholarship from a D1 school was the goal, however we knew it would take a lot of work and dedication and talent and it probably wouldn’t happen. It did. It can be done but the kid has to be that good.

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          #34
          It comes down to goals vs. expectations.

          Goal - a desired result
          Expectation - belief that result will happen.

          Comment


            #35
            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
            It is not always true that a D1 level player wouldn’t choose D3 instead. I know 2 D1 players who received quite a bit of scholarship money. Both told me directly that they would most definitely counsel some players to choose D3 because of the D1 time commitment, especially if that player has a difficult college major requiring internships or lab time. Both say it is a ton of work for them playing D1.
            Agree. There are kids out there with plenty of talent but want something more than soccer out of college. This forum presumes otherwise all the time. Of course there are some kids who say they don't want to play D1 to save face but there are some who just have different goals than college soccer. I know a talented young lady with zero desire of D1 soccer. She's thinking well beyond college soccer when making her choice.

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              #36
              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
              Agree. There are kids out there with plenty of talent but want something more than soccer out of college. This forum presumes otherwise all the time. Of course there are some kids who say they don't want to play D1 to save face but there are some who just have different goals than college soccer. I know a talented young lady with zero desire of D1 soccer. She's thinking well beyond college soccer when making her choice.
              I call BS. Any really truly talented D1 level kid playing on a high level team through high school is doing so because they love to play and would love to continue to play. Thinking of college experience and beyond is done hand in hand with playing soccer. Nobody is like “All I want to do is play soccer”. They all want the total experience and there’s no reason they can’t have it all, if in fact, they are that good.

              Comment


                #37
                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                I call BS. Any really truly talented D1 level kid playing on a high level team through high school is doing so because they love to play and would love to continue to play. Thinking of college experience and beyond is done hand in hand with playing soccer. Nobody is like “All I want to do is play soccer”. They all want the total experience and there’s no reason they can’t have it all, if in fact, they are that good.
                Have you talked to any D1 players lately? The ones I know say it is a ton of work and they give up a lot of things in college because of their soccer commitments. Both love it, but say the commitment is way more than high school. Both hope to play beyond college so the sacrifice is worth it for them, but they say those players on their team who wish to do something else after college question their choice sometimes. It depends on your school and the level of soccer at your school, but it is clear that some people on this site have no idea about the life of a d1 athlete who also wants to do well in school.

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                  #38
                  Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                  I call BS. Any really truly talented D1 level kid playing on a high level team through high school is doing so because they love to play and would love to continue to play. Thinking of college experience and beyond is done hand in hand with playing soccer. Nobody is like “All I want to do is play soccer”. They all want the total experience and there’s no reason they can’t have it all, if in fact, they are that good.
                  Call BS all you want. I personally know one girl who turned down D1 this year. Yes she played high level soccer throughout HS and yes she loves the game. However as she's grown up she realized she wants more from life than soccer and chose her college according to that. You not believing that kids want more to life than soccer doesn't make it untrue.

                  Comment


                    #39
                    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                    Have you talked to any D1 players lately? The ones I know say it is a ton of work and they give up a lot of things in college because of their soccer commitments. Both love it, but say the commitment is way more than high school. Both hope to play beyond college so the sacrifice is worth it for them, but they say those players on their team who wish to do something else after college question their choice sometimes. It depends on your school and the level of soccer at your school, but it is clear that some people on this site have no idea about the life of a d1 athlete who also wants to do well in school.
                    DI programs own you... plain and simple. The coaches and academic advisors for the teams make your schedule to fit with practice times and travel schedules. Your weight room / conditioning workouts are scheduled for you. Then you have film, technical training, and tactical training. Your travel schedule takes you off campus at minimum once a week and you have to maintain classes online while gone. Teams often eat meals together because their schedule is not the same as when the dining halls are open. In season life for a DI athlete is nothing close to that of any other student on campus. Winter and spring is easier and more like a true college experience.

                    Get injured, don't be surprised if the money you were getting disappears next season. That happens and is allowed by the NCAA.

                    Comment


                      #40
                      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                      DI programs own you... plain and simple. The coaches and academic advisors for the teams make your schedule to fit with practice times and travel schedules. Your weight room / conditioning workouts are scheduled for you. Then you have film, technical training, and tactical training. Your travel schedule takes you off campus at minimum once a week and you have to maintain classes online while gone. Teams often eat meals together because their schedule is not the same as when the dining halls are open. In season life for a DI athlete is nothing close to that of any other student on campus. Winter and spring is easier and more like a true college experience.

                      Get injured, don't be surprised if the money you were getting disappears next season. That happens and is allowed by the NCAA.
                      Even D1 winter and spring has plenty of commitment whereas D3 is much more balanced. Doing internships and study abroad is very difficult for D1. Even your summer is cut short because you have to be back on campus to train well before everyone else. I know tons of kids for whom that just isn't appealing. Yes they love the game, yes they want to play. But they also know that in the long term soccer won't define them. Their education and career choices will. It's part of growing up and moving into life's next chapter.

                      Many D1 coaches will tell you college is about 3 things - academics, sports and the social scene. If you're doing D1 you only get to pick 2 of the 3. Guess which gets cut short?

                      Comment


                        #41
                        So much misinformation on here from people who think they know what they are talking about but don’t. They also would love it if their son/daughter got a D1 scholarship. So it seems that since they didn’t or won’t, it’s easier to exaggerate and fabricate all the negatives.

                        There are plenty of D1 players living college and playing and getting a great education to get a job or continue their education after graduating college. And their parents love watching them play. It’s okay to be a little envious but jealousy is ugly.

                        Comment


                          #42
                          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                          So much misinformation on here from people who think they know what they are talking about but don’t. They also would love it if their son/daughter got a D1 scholarship. So it seems that since they didn’t or won’t, it’s easier to exaggerate and fabricate all the negatives.

                          There are plenty of D1 players living college and playing and getting a great education to get a job or continue their education after graduating college. And their parents love watching them play. It’s okay to be a little envious but jealousy is ugly.
                          What's misinformation? That it's time consuming? That some choose to not to play so they can find balance?

                          Yes, there's plenty of athletes who do it all and have succeeded. And, there are plenty who cannot.

                          Comment


                            #43
                            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                            So much misinformation on here from people who think they know what they are talking about but don’t. They also would love it if their son/daughter got a D1 scholarship. So it seems that since they didn’t or won’t, it’s easier to exaggerate and fabricate all the negatives.

                            There are plenty of D1 players living college and playing and getting a great education to get a job or continue their education after graduating college. And their parents love watching them play. It’s okay to be a little envious but jealousy is ugly.
                            I am not sure why you seem to have a chip on your shoulder about this. Who cares what a player chooses. My D1 player loves the soccer but knows they have made many sacrifices in college for soccer. They also know that there are D3 players out there who could have played D1 and some who couldn’t and in the end it really doesn’t matter.

                            Comment


                              #44
                              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                              So much misinformation on here from people who think they know what they are talking about but don’t. They also would love it if their son/daughter got a D1 scholarship. So it seems that since they didn’t or won’t, it’s easier to exaggerate and fabricate all the negatives.

                              There are plenty of D1 players living college and playing and getting a great education to get a job or continue their education after graduating college. And their parents love watching them play. It’s okay to be a little envious but jealousy is ugly.
                              I think you're being purposely obtuse, right?

                              No one is saying D1 is miserable and no one wants to play. Plenty do. But you seem to have a hard time understanding that there are many other athletes who COULD play D1 but choose not to. They love the game and will play D3, and then they'll graduate and move on. It's not jealousy, it's not untrue. It is just young adults making a different choice than you obviously would make.

                              Also? Yup, I'm sure many would love it if their kids were offered a D1 scholarship but most of us wouldn't force that on them if it's not what they want.

                              You seem to have a difficult time accepting different people have different priorities and soccer isn't the be all and end all for everyone that it seems to be for you.

                              Comment


                                #45
                                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                                I am not sure why you seem to have a chip on your shoulder about this. Who cares what a player chooses. My D1 player loves the soccer but knows they have made many sacrifices in college for soccer. They also know that there are D3 players out there who could have played D1 and some who couldn’t and in the end it really doesn’t matter.
                                I actually do place a tremendous amount of merit on playing D2 and D3 soccer in college and commend all higher education endeavors by students and student athletes. There’s so many paths to choose. The chip comes from the negativity on here. Scroll back and you see post after post on the idea of striving for a D1 scholarships as nearly impossible (so don’t do it), then that it’s basically not a great life to be a D1 athlete (so don’t do it), and that so-in-so knows players given D1 opportunities but turned them down because they won’t ever smile in college (so don’t do it), and if you get hurt you’re out which is actually not true (so don’t do it), etc etc.

                                It all sounds like sour grapes to a parent of a player getting a D1 scholarship. We are all ecstatic.

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